I like to lift heavy things, make colorful food, write, and talk about pop culture.

what goes into a plate

Remember the food pyramid? It always excited me that carbs were on the bottom and therefore the biggest part of a plate. What they didn’t tell you, is a lot of carbs can be found in fruits and veggies that you should be opting for more per serving than the carbs we know and love. It’s a hard truth, but I promise, you can be healthy and eat those carbs too.

I tend to prescribe to the 80-20 diet, meaning that 80% of the time I try to eat healthfully and 20% of the time, I indulge. As you can observe from my plates if you follow along regularly, or if you check out my collection of food pics most likely on Fridays, I always include protein, carbs, fats, and fruits and veggies for each meal.

For my purposes, I’m breaking my plate into four parts: protein, carbs, fats, and fruits and veggies. For ‘dairy,’ I do eat a lot of cheese, so anytime that is included in my meal, it will fall under protein.

Breakfast-

My standard go-to breakfasts include eggs, toast, and berries; oatmeal with peanut butter and berries; or pancakes made of whole wheat flour, sweetened by banana, and stuffed with peanut butter. Breakfast is my absolute favorite meal of the day and while I love trying out new recipes, this is often not the meal in which I will explore my culinary talents. I love what I love.

Sometimes I’ll meal prep with salads, stir frys, or whatever recipe I’ve found for the week that I think will stay good throughout the week. I don’t necessarily have any favorites, but most often, you’ll find salads, sandwiches, tacos, and soups depending on the season. Many times, I’ll go meatless at lunch and find my protein through beans, cheeses, grains, and veggies.

It’s my favorite meal in which to explore because there’s so much you can do and there’s more time at night (for me) than when I’d be preparing lunch. I eat a lot of chicken and fish, particularly cod and salmon, as well as the occasional steak. I love pasta and tend to stick to the whole wheat variety, but try to eat brown rice more. I will also sometimes eat a baked potato or make sweet potato fries if I’m feeling fancy.